On each evening of the Book Fair, at around 8 p.m., the FIL Forum presents a program featuring performing artists from the guest of honor, which this year is the European Union.
Saturday, November 25: European Union Youth Orchestra. Inaugural classical music concert directed by the Mexican conductor Carlos Miguel Prieto with 39 young musicians from 22 EU countries. About 40 young Mexican musicians will be invited to join the orchestra.
Sunday, November 26: Balkan Adriatic Festival. Musical and dance show from Bulgaria, Croatia, Greece, Romania and Italy, in collaboration with dancers from Mexico.
Monday, November 27: European Jazz Night. An evening dedicated to contemporary European jazz, with the participation of Sketchbook Quartet (Austria), saxophonist Angelika Niescier (Germany) and cellist Mabe Fratti (Guatemala/Mexico).
Tuesday, November 28: Contemporary dance show. A choreography with 12 European and Mexican dancers interpreting “In C”, created by Sasha Waltz. Accompanied by a live orchestra.
Wednesday, November 29: Irish harp concert & “Añoranza.” Featuring two well-known traditional harp players from Ireland, Siobhán Armstrong and Séamus Ó Flatharta. The Irish harp has been inscribed as an intangible heritage of humanity. “Añoranza” combines classical virtuosity and creativity, with Francesco Tristano (Luxembourg) and Rami Khalifé (France-Lebanon), accompanied by piano and electronic synthesizer.
Thursday, November 30: Nordic Evening. Concert created by Sara Parkman (Sweden) around the Nordic voices of herding, a matriarchal tradition that has been used in the Nordic countries for more than 500 years. These voices are unique and constitute a fundamental element of Nordic folk musical culture
Friday, December 1: Independent scenes and club fusion. Scenes from independent European contemporary music with ECHT!, a futuristic instrumental quartet that draws inspiration from electronic music as well as hip-hop, trap and funk from Brussels, followed by French DJs Chloe and Warum, performing back-to-back.
Saturday, December 2: Rap night. Three European rappers will take the stage to share an innovative urban expression of European youth, with the French-Chilean Lázuli, the Greek-Sierra Leonean Kareem Kalokoh and Gleb, who comes from Bratislava, Slovakia.
Sunday, December 3: Spain-Mexico Festival. Amazing voices from Spain and Mexico combine for the closing artistic show of FIL 2023 and the opening to Spain as the guest of honor in 2024. Featuring the compositions of the young singer-songwriter Valeria Castro, the voice of Silvia Pérez Cruz, and the Mexican group Daniel Me Estàs Matando, showcasing its well-known genre of bolero-glam.
The space in the FIL Forum, which is located near the entrance to Expo Guadalajara, is somewhat limited, so all those who wish to attend these performances are advised to grab seats early. They are unnumbered and entry is free of charge, and seating is given on a first-come, first-seated basis.